Point and Howl Dog Training

12/09/2025

☝🏻

12/08/2025

Client love + real results = why I do what I do. 💥🐾
Thank you for trusting Point and Howl.

12/06/2025

🔈 Reminder:

1. I service both Tucson and Phoenix (& in between), offering private lessons, boarding school and limited boarding exclusively for my current training clients.

2. Photography is alive and well. If you want clean, professional images of you and your dog, I’d love to work together. To see examples of my work, follow this link:
🔗 https://pointandhowl.com/dog-photography/

3. I’m an AKC Evaluator, ready to test your dog for their next AKC title whenever you’re ready to level up.

If you’re interested in collaborating, feel free to browse the website and get a feel for everything we offer at Point and Howl Dog Training.

📞 520-606-4994
🌐 pointandhowl.com

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12/06/2025

11/26/2025

The dog who keeps me sharp and humbled. I love this little spitfire.

11/22/2025

11/15/2025

😂

11/07/2025

Reactive ≠ bad.

Dogs are naturally reactive to the environment around them. And reactive doesn’t always mean aggressive. It simply means dogs are highly aware of the world around them. They’re sensory-driven animals built to notice movement, sound, scent, and energy shifts — the very instincts that once helped them survive as hunters and guardians.

Some breeds, especially working and herding types like German Shepherds, Malinois, and Border Collies, are intentionally bred to react fast to environmental changes. That sharpness makes them incredible partners — but without proper structure and exposure, it can also lead to overreactions like barking, lunging, or biting when overstimulated.

In today’s suburban world, the very instincts that once made dogs exceptional hunters and guardians often clash with the lifestyle we’ve built for them. Doorbells, delivery trucks, barking dogs behind fences… Visual, auditory, sensory overload — keeping dogs’ nervous system activated at all times. To us, that vigilance looks like misbehavior. But to the dog, it’s just being aware, doing what it was designed to do.

Because our human environments are predictable and artificial, we tend to label natural canine responses — barking, scanning, lunging, pacing — as “bad,” when in reality they’re symptoms of an animal trying to navigate overstimulation without guidance.

Early and consistent exposure to new environments, surfaces, sounds, and social settings helps dogs learn how to think before they react. A well-socialized, confident dog doesn’t ignore the world — they just know how to stay composed in it.

A reactive dog isn’t “bad.” They’re overwhelmed, under-guided, and waiting for guidance that makes sense in a modern world that’s anything but natural.